Showing posts with label bicycles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bicycles. Show all posts
Monday, July 29, 2019
The Chicago 1919 Race Riot-- Part 3: Bronzeville, Bridgeport and Back of the Yards
Recently about 150 bicyclists took a journey through this event's history, starting at the Lake Michigan shore front at 29th Street, the site of the only marker of the event. They then went through sites in Chicago neighborhoods now called Bronzeville, Bridgeport and Back of the Yards.
This was "The Chicago 1919 Bike Tour: Visualizing the 1919 Riots in Today's Chicago." It is part of "Chicago 1919: Confronting the Race Riots" which is a year-long initiative.
The Chicago Sun-Times first learned about this in March and interviewed 107-year-old Juanita Mitchell who now lives in south suburban Chicago, but in 1919 lived in the affected areas as an eight-year-old and remembers how women and children hid in her home as the men stood guard by the window.
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
People Stealing Bicycles
From the Feb. 1, 2017, MidWeek "Looking Back."
1942. 75 Years Ago.
"Warning!! Lock your bicycle inside your garage or home. A bike stealing blitz is believed started.
"Sycamore police reported that three bicycles were stole from two front porches within a few blocks of each other Thursday night."
I liked the newspaper calling it a "blitz." A little war terminology goes regular.
And, you thought people were so honest back then.
Sounds Like a Crime of Opportunity. --Cooter
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Woe Follows the Trail of the Bicycle
From the 1897 Chicago Tribune.
An interesting article about problems associated with these bicycles.
UNPRECEDENTED TWO MONTHS' RECORD OF THREE HUNDRED SERIOUS ACCIDENTS TRACEABLE TO THE WHEEL.
ONE HUNDRED CASES ON THE POLICE RECORDS.
ANALYSIS OF THE CASES REPORTED SHOWS THE CAUSES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LONG ARRAY OF CASUALTIES.
From the records of the Police Department of Chicago for the months of June and July 1897.
Pedestrians run down by cyclists-- 10
Accidents from broken machines-- 4
Wheelmen falling from machines-- 10
Cyclists colliding-- 7
Colliding with electric cars-- 7
Wheelmen run down by teams-- 10
Wheelmen colliding with teams-- 21
Ran against obstacles-- 2
Clothing catching in machine-- 3
Hurt by runaway horse-- 1
Injured in crossing tracks-- 3
Rode into river-- 1
Cyclists collided in racing-- 6
Wheelmen thrown from machines-- 5
No-lamp collisions-- 3
Run down by horseman-- 1
Total-- 100
Be Careful Out There-- DaCoot
An interesting article about problems associated with these bicycles.
UNPRECEDENTED TWO MONTHS' RECORD OF THREE HUNDRED SERIOUS ACCIDENTS TRACEABLE TO THE WHEEL.
ONE HUNDRED CASES ON THE POLICE RECORDS.
ANALYSIS OF THE CASES REPORTED SHOWS THE CAUSES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LONG ARRAY OF CASUALTIES.
From the records of the Police Department of Chicago for the months of June and July 1897.
Pedestrians run down by cyclists-- 10
Accidents from broken machines-- 4
Wheelmen falling from machines-- 10
Cyclists colliding-- 7
Colliding with electric cars-- 7
Wheelmen run down by teams-- 10
Wheelmen colliding with teams-- 21
Ran against obstacles-- 2
Clothing catching in machine-- 3
Hurt by runaway horse-- 1
Injured in crossing tracks-- 3
Rode into river-- 1
Cyclists collided in racing-- 6
Wheelmen thrown from machines-- 5
No-lamp collisions-- 3
Run down by horseman-- 1
Total-- 100
Be Careful Out There-- DaCoot
Bikes Were All the Chicago Rage in the 1890s-- Part 4: Paving Streets and Tags
Some local clergy even went so far as to condemn bike riding on the Sabbath. Bicycles were blamed for declining theater attendance, railroad revenue and horse riding. Temperance folk were hoping alcohol consumption would go down, but it held steady. Chewing gum went up, though.
Automobiles were still quite rare, but there were other vehicles to worry about for bicyclists. Carriages and wagons pulled by horses were one problem as were pedestrians (Just try getting across a bike lane in Amsterdam without getting hit.)
Seeking a solution to the increasing street chaos, some suggested raised bicycle paths and cycling organizations lobbied the city to pave streets. In 1897, the City Council passed an ordinance requiring$1 identification tags on bicycles. Cycling clubs supported it hoping it would lead to more paves streets.
Rather quickly the craze went bust. Sales, organizations and builders dropped plunged 1897-1904
But one Chicago firm building bicycles, Arnold, Schwinn & Co. stuck around.
Of course, this bicycling craze set the stage for the automobile craze coming along later.
Hey Mister, Get a Bike!! --Cooter
Automobiles were still quite rare, but there were other vehicles to worry about for bicyclists. Carriages and wagons pulled by horses were one problem as were pedestrians (Just try getting across a bike lane in Amsterdam without getting hit.)
Seeking a solution to the increasing street chaos, some suggested raised bicycle paths and cycling organizations lobbied the city to pave streets. In 1897, the City Council passed an ordinance requiring$1 identification tags on bicycles. Cycling clubs supported it hoping it would lead to more paves streets.
Rather quickly the craze went bust. Sales, organizations and builders dropped plunged 1897-1904
But one Chicago firm building bicycles, Arnold, Schwinn & Co. stuck around.
Of course, this bicycling craze set the stage for the automobile craze coming along later.
Hey Mister, Get a Bike!! --Cooter
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Bikes Were All the Chicago Rage in the 1890s-- Part 3: Competition and Females
Hundreds of cyclists competed in the annual Pullman Bicycle Race which drew as many as 100,000 spectators along its 15 mile route
Cycling tracks were built in the parks. Garfield Park was where the black cyclist Major Taylor set a world record in 1899 while doing a mile in just over a minute 22 seconds. The Chicago Tribune called him "The Colored Wonder."
There were other endurance competitions racing for six days with only short breaks. One such competition took place at the Chicago Colesium which resulted in Illinois' General Assembly making it illegal to race for more than 12 hours straight.
Some worried that the female body was too fragile to withstand the physical efforts of cycling. Others feared that bicycling made it too easy for young men and women to socialize away from watchful eyes. One coachman crashed in 1896 when he was distracted by the sight of "a well-formed woman wearing a suit of of red bloomers."
--DaCoot
Cycling tracks were built in the parks. Garfield Park was where the black cyclist Major Taylor set a world record in 1899 while doing a mile in just over a minute 22 seconds. The Chicago Tribune called him "The Colored Wonder."
There were other endurance competitions racing for six days with only short breaks. One such competition took place at the Chicago Colesium which resulted in Illinois' General Assembly making it illegal to race for more than 12 hours straight.
Some worried that the female body was too fragile to withstand the physical efforts of cycling. Others feared that bicycling made it too easy for young men and women to socialize away from watchful eyes. One coachman crashed in 1896 when he was distracted by the sight of "a well-formed woman wearing a suit of of red bloomers."
--DaCoot
Shorpy Photos of 1900 Safety Bicycles
From Shorpy Site.
Kind of interesting that I would come across these two photographs right when I was doing entries about bicycling in Chicago 1890-1900.
From the Nov. 17, 2014, Shorpy "Miss Handle Bars: 1900
From the Nov. 18, 2014, Shorpy "Rover Boys: 1900.
See what those bikes looked like.
--Cooter
Kind of interesting that I would come across these two photographs right when I was doing entries about bicycling in Chicago 1890-1900.
From the Nov. 17, 2014, Shorpy "Miss Handle Bars: 1900
From the Nov. 18, 2014, Shorpy "Rover Boys: 1900.
See what those bikes looked like.
--Cooter
Monday, December 8, 2014
Bikes Were All the Rage in Chicago in the 1890s-- Part 2: Bicycling Capital
Bicycles had been in Chicago at least since 1868, when local resident Augustus Wheeler went around in a French "velocipede. It wasn't until the late 1880s, when "safety bicycles" came onto the market. These featured two wheels of the same size instead of the very dangerous big wheel ones.
Chicago became the bicycle center of the country by 1896. Bicycle makers had grown from 4 to 25 companies in the previous six years and were turning out 250,000 a year. (Then, there were the two brothers building bicycles in their shop in Dayton, Ohio,) At an average cost of $75, they were well beyond the pay of most workers.
By 1896, there were 50 cycling clubs in the city with around 10,000 members altogether.
One cycling enthusiast was Carter Harrison Jr. whose father had been mayor. When he ran for mayor in 1897, he posed on a bicycle for a campaign photo and received the support of the cyclists and won his first of five mayoral elections.
Ride! Ride! That Bicycle. --DaCoot
Chicago became the bicycle center of the country by 1896. Bicycle makers had grown from 4 to 25 companies in the previous six years and were turning out 250,000 a year. (Then, there were the two brothers building bicycles in their shop in Dayton, Ohio,) At an average cost of $75, they were well beyond the pay of most workers.
By 1896, there were 50 cycling clubs in the city with around 10,000 members altogether.
One cycling enthusiast was Carter Harrison Jr. whose father had been mayor. When he ran for mayor in 1897, he posed on a bicycle for a campaign photo and received the support of the cyclists and won his first of five mayoral elections.
Ride! Ride! That Bicycle. --DaCoot
Bikes Were All the Rage in Chicago in the 1890s-- Part 1: "Scorchers" and "Bloomers"
From the May 4, 2014, Chicago Tribune "Chicago, cycling capital" by Robert Loerzel.
"Chicago's fastest, rudest bicyclists were called 'scorchers.' They hunched over their handlebars as they raced in the streets. They were 'selfish, reckless, impudent transgressors of the law and trespassers upon the rights of others,' said the Tribune back then." Scorchers were the forerunners of some of the more aggressive auto drivers on the city's expressways today.
By 1897, about 300,000 people -- 1 of every 5 Chicagoans-- rode bikes according to the city.
1986 was the pinnacle of America's first cycling craze and Chicago was right at the forefront.
"Scorchers" weren't the only "wheelmen" as cyclists were called. Upper-class citizens took leisurely rides along the city boulevards. Even some laborers who could afford bikes, rode them to work.
Women and girls were also riding, but with difficulty with the cumbersome ankle-length dresses they had to wear. According to a Tribune story, Lucy Porter was the first female to ride a bicycle in baggy trousers called bloomers. Lucy and other "Bloomer Gals" took grief on occasion for dressing like a man.
Don't be a Scorcers!" --Cooter
"Chicago's fastest, rudest bicyclists were called 'scorchers.' They hunched over their handlebars as they raced in the streets. They were 'selfish, reckless, impudent transgressors of the law and trespassers upon the rights of others,' said the Tribune back then." Scorchers were the forerunners of some of the more aggressive auto drivers on the city's expressways today.
By 1897, about 300,000 people -- 1 of every 5 Chicagoans-- rode bikes according to the city.
1986 was the pinnacle of America's first cycling craze and Chicago was right at the forefront.
"Scorchers" weren't the only "wheelmen" as cyclists were called. Upper-class citizens took leisurely rides along the city boulevards. Even some laborers who could afford bikes, rode them to work.
Women and girls were also riding, but with difficulty with the cumbersome ankle-length dresses they had to wear. According to a Tribune story, Lucy Porter was the first female to ride a bicycle in baggy trousers called bloomers. Lucy and other "Bloomer Gals" took grief on occasion for dressing like a man.
Don't be a Scorcers!" --Cooter
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